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1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.1.1U.S. Powerball jackpot soars to $625 million ahead of Saturday’s drawinghttps://cinesilip.su/news/u-s-powerball-jackpot-soars-to-625-million-ahead-of-saturdays-drawing/
https://cinesilip.su/news/u-s-powerball-jackpot-soars-to-625-million-ahead-of-saturdays-drawing/#respondThu, 21 Mar 2019 17:15:21 +0000https://cinesilip.su/news/u-s-powerball-jackpot-soars-to-625-million-ahead-of-saturdays-drawing/(Reuters) – The U.S. Powerball jackpot leaped to at least $645 million on Thursday ahead of its second drawing after no one claimed the winning numbers announced on Wednesday, when the cash prize was at $550 million, according to lottery officials. The jackpot, which surpassed the $600 million mark for the fourth time in history, […]]]>

(Reuters) – The U.S. Powerball jackpot leaped to at least $645 million on Thursday ahead of its second drawing after no one claimed the winning numbers announced on Wednesday, when the cash prize was at $550 million, according to lottery officials.

The jackpot, which surpassed the $600 million mark for the fourth time in history, has an estimated cash value of $380.6 million, officials said. The next drawing was scheduled for Saturday, March 23.

“A lot like the flowers in the southwest, this $625 million Powerball jackpot is a spectacular super bloom,” David Barden, Powerball Product Group Chairman, said in the statement. “It does not happen often – and when it does, everyone wants to be a part of it.”

The latest increase comes more than two weeks after an anonymous sole winner of a $1.5 billion U.S. Mega Millions drawing last fall claimed the jackpot, according South Carolina’s lottery commission.

Lottery players in the United States were in a frenzy ahead of October’s drawing, forming long lines outside of ticket-sellers. In the four days leading up to the drawing, about 370 million of the $2 Mega Millions tickets were sold in 44 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The winner, only referred to as a “South Carolinian”, collected a record one-time cash sum of more than $877 million.

The Texas-based 22-year-old, winner of a record-equalling four gold medals at the Rio Olympics, was one of more than 100 gymnasts who say they were abused by former Gymnastics USA doctor Larry Nassar who was jailed last year.

Gymnastics USA was criticized for failing to safeguard the welfare of its athletes and the subject of dozens of lawsuits by victims of Nassar.

Speaking ahead of the Superstars of Gymnastics event taking place in London on Saturday, Biles, who said next year’s Olympics in Tokyo will “definitely” be her last, said she was encouraged by their response.

“We are all very hopeful that they (Gymnastics USA) are making the right decisions so that we can kind of get out of that dark place,” Biles told Reuters close to the O2 Arena which will host Saturday’s event.

Biles received widespread admiration when going public about being abused by Nassar and was, along with other victims, awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage award.

“The response has been good and encouraging, knowing that its kind of relateable in a way,” she said. “But you know, you have to pick and choose your battles wisely.

“I think my actions have given other athletes a way to know that they are not alone and (abuse) does happen, so they don’t have to be in the dark about everything.”

Biles, heralded as the greatest gymnast of all time, will perform exhibition routines at the Superstars of Gymnastics event, with her role chiefly as part of the judging-panel that will use an “out of 10” scoring system.

It will be a light-hearted distraction before the serious business of the countdown to Tokyo.

She admits to tough times since returning to action from a two-year break although her four golds at the world championships in Doha showed she was back to her dazzling best.

“The muscle memory is there, but it was a little bit difficult to keep up at times,” she said.

“There were times I wanted to give up. In the end I knew what the goals were and it paid off.

Biles will be 23 in Tokyo, relatively old for female gymnastics, but feels the age demographic is changing.

“Even after the Olympics we had the oldest American team with an average age of 19, but we were also the most successful,” she said. “So I feel the age is changing just a little bit, so hopefully the peaking age is not 16 any more!”

“I hope I make the team,” she said. “This time it will be smaller with just four in 2020 so that’s more difficult.”

The Texas-based 22-year-old, winner of a record-equaling four gold medals at the Rio Olympics, was one of more than 100 gymnasts who say they were abused by former Gymnastics USA doctor Larry Nassar who was jailed last year.

Gymnastics USA was criticized for failing to safeguard the welfare of its athletes and the subject of dozens of lawsuits by victims of Nassar.

Speaking ahead of the Superstars of Gymnastics event taking place in London on Saturday, Biles, who said next year’s Olympics in Tokyo will “definitely” be her last, said she was encouraged by their response.

“We are all very hopeful that they (Gymnastics USA) are making the right decisions so that we can kind of get out of that dark place,” Biles told Reuters close to the O2 Arena which will host Saturday’s event.

Biles received widespread admiration when going public about being abused by Nassar and was, along with other victims, awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage award.

“The response has been good and encouraging, knowing that its kind of relateable in a way,” she said. “But you know, you have to pick and choose your battles wisely.

“I think my actions have given other athletes a way to know that they are not alone and (abuse) does happen, so they don’t have to be in the dark about everything.”

Biles, heralded as the greatest gymnast of all time, will perform exhibition routines at the Superstars of Gymnastics event, with her role chiefly as part of the judging-panel that will use an “out of 10” scoring system.

It will be a light-hearted distraction before the serious business of the countdown to Tokyo.

She admits to tough times since returning to action from a two-year break although her four golds at the world championships in Doha showed she was back to her dazzling best.

“The muscle memory is there, but it was a little bit difficult to keep up at times,” she said.

“There were times I wanted to give up. In the end I knew what the goals were and it paid off.

Biles will be 23 in Tokyo, relatively old for female gymnastics, but feels the age demographic is changing.

“Even after the Olympics we had the oldest American team with an average age of 19, but we were also the most successful,” she said. “So I feel the age is changing just a little bit, so hopefully the peaking age is not 16 any more!”

“I hope I make the team,” she said. “This time it will be smaller with just four in 2020 so that’s more difficult.”

]]>https://cinesilip.su/news/u-s-team-heading-in-positive-direction-from-dark-place-says-biles/feed/0Mississippi governor to sign ‘heartbeat’ abortion banhttps://cinesilip.su/news/mississippi-governor-to-sign-heartbeat-abortion-ban/
https://cinesilip.su/news/mississippi-governor-to-sign-heartbeat-abortion-ban/#respondThu, 21 Mar 2019 14:05:13 +0000https://cinesilip.su/news/mississippi-governor-to-sign-heartbeat-abortion-ban/(Reuters) – Mississippi’s Republican governor was due to sign one of America’s strictest abortion bills on Thursday banning women from obtaining an abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can often occur before a woman even realizes she is pregnant. FILE PHOTO: Phil Bryant, governor of Mississippi, speaks during an election night party for […]]]>

(Reuters) – Mississippi’s Republican governor was due to sign one of America’s strictest abortion bills on Thursday banning women from obtaining an abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can often occur before a woman even realizes she is pregnant.

Dubbed the ‘heartbeat bill,’ this is the second legislative attempt in under a year aimed at restricting abortions in a state with a single abortion clinic.

In a tweet earlier this week, Governor Phil Bryant thanked the state’s legislature for “protecting the unborn” by passing the bill and sending it to him for his signature.

The Mississippi bill joins a wave of similar Republican-backed measures recently introduced in Iowa, Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia.

Conservative Republican proponents say these bills are intended to challenge Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1973 landmark ruling that women have a constitutional right to an abortion.

U.S. states are jostling for a showdown on abortion rights in 2019, with all eyes on the conservative-dominated Supreme Court.

Just last November, a U.S. federal judge struck down a Mississippi law banning most abortions after 15 weeks, ruling that it “unequivocally” violates women’s constitutional rights.

The new Mississippi bill prohibits the abortion of a fetus with a detectable heartbeat, before the point where a woman may be aware she are pregnant.

It also states that any physician who violates the restriction is subject to losing their license to practice medicine.

The bill makes exceptions for women whose health is at extreme risk. It is a victory for anti-abortion groups, but abortion rights advocates have promised to pursue legal action if Bryant signs the bill.

“The term ‘heartbeat bill’ is a manipulative misnomer,” The Center for Reproductive Rights, a global abortion rights advocacy group, tweeted on Wednesday. “These bills actually rob women of their choice to have an #abortion before they even know they’re pregnant.”

The group added that it would sue Bryant if he signs the bill into law.

A fetus that is viable outside the womb, usually at 24 weeks, has widely been considered the threshold in the United States to prohibit an abortion.

Last week, a federal judge blocked Kentucky’s fetal heartbeat abortion law. An Iowa judge overturned that state’s heartbeat law in January after declaring it violated the state’s constitution.

]]>https://cinesilip.su/news/mississippi-governor-to-sign-heartbeat-abortion-ban/feed/0Residents told to shelter in place after Texas petrochemical plant firehttps://cinesilip.su/news/residents-told-to-shelter-in-place-after-texas-petrochemical-plant-fire/
https://cinesilip.su/news/residents-told-to-shelter-in-place-after-texas-petrochemical-plant-fire/#respondThu, 21 Mar 2019 12:46:24 +0000https://cinesilip.su/news/residents-told-to-shelter-in-place-after-texas-petrochemical-plant-fire/(Reuters) – Residents of a Houston-area community were told to remain indoors and schools were closed on Thursday after a petrochemical plant fire that burned for days released high levels of volatile organic compounds into the air. Smoke rises from a fire burning at the Intercontinental Terminals Company in Deer Park, east of Houston, Texas, […]]]>

(Reuters) – Residents of a Houston-area community were told to remain indoors and schools were closed on Thursday after a petrochemical plant fire that burned for days released high levels of volatile organic compounds into the air.

Smoke rises from a fire burning at the Intercontinental Terminals Company in Deer Park, east of Houston, Texas, U.S., March 18, 2019. Jaimie Meldrum/@jamiejow/Handout via REUTERS

The three-day blaze at Mitsui unit Intercontinental Terminals Co (ITC) in Deer Park, Texas, was extinguished early on Wednesday. No injuries were reported.

The City of Deer Park, 20 miles (32 km) east of Houston, issued a shelter-in-place advisory to its 34,000 residents after reports of “action levels” of benzene or other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) within city limits, the municipality said on its website.

Residents were advised to remain indoors, close all doors and windows and turn off air conditioning and heating systems. They were also told to cover any gaps, holes or cracks with wet towels or sheets to prevent vapors from entering their homes.

A state highway was also closed in the city and the Deer Park Independent School District canceled classes.

The fire, which began on Sunday morning, destroyed 11 tanks of gasoline and other fuels. Before the fire, the facility had 242 tanks able to hold up to 13.1 million barrels of fuels.

The cause of the blaze has not been determined, officials said.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality estimated that on the first day of the fire, 6.2 million pounds of carbon monoxide and thousands of pounds of nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and toluene were released.

A U.S. Environmental Protection Agency official said on Wednesday that air-monitoring systems near the site along the nation’s busiest petrochemical shipping port found no hazardous levels of volatile organic compounds or particulate matter.

The federal agency said it will test local waterways for possible contamination from the millions of gallons of water and foam that were dropped on the fire since Sunday.

Some of the liquids leaked out of a containment dike and into a nearby drainage ditch that feeds into the Houston Ship Channel, the EPA official said.

The state’s environmental regulator said it was investigating the incident. The agency has cited Intercontinental Terminals for violations of state air-emissions rules 39 times over the past 16 years.

The Harris County district attorney’s office has assigned an environmental prosecutor for any possible wrongdoing, a spokesman said.

]]>https://cinesilip.su/news/residents-told-to-shelter-in-place-after-texas-petrochemical-plant-fire/feed/0For asylum seekers in Mexico, U.S. judge asks, ‘How does the court serve them?’https://cinesilip.su/news/for-asylum-seekers-in-mexico-u-s-judge-asks-how-does-the-court-serve-them/
https://cinesilip.su/news/for-asylum-seekers-in-mexico-u-s-judge-asks-how-does-the-court-serve-them/#respondThu, 21 Mar 2019 05:01:28 +0000https://cinesilip.su/news/for-asylum-seekers-in-mexico-u-s-judge-asks-how-does-the-court-serve-them/SAN DIEGO/EL PASO (Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Wednesday questioned how the government would be able to properly attend to Central American asylum seekers forced to live in Mexico while their claims are processed, on the same day the government expanded the program to El Paso. The program is a key part of measures […]]]>

SAN DIEGO/EL PASO (Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Wednesday questioned how the government would be able to properly attend to Central American asylum seekers forced to live in Mexico while their claims are processed, on the same day the government expanded the program to El Paso.

The program is a key part of measures by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to curb the flow of mostly Central American migrants trying to enter the United States.

Critics say it violates U.S. law and international norms as migrants are sent back to often dangerous towns in Mexico, where it is difficult to keep track of their U.S. court dates and to find legal help.

On the second day of hearings under the program, known as Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), Judge Jonathan Simpson at a San Diego courthouse repeatedly asked the government’s attorney how to handle cases of applicants told to wait for their U.S. court dates in Mexican border towns.

“How does the court serve them if we do not have an address?” Simpson asked, after saying he was concerned whether the government could serve notices for court appearances to migrants in Mexico.

“I don’t have the answer,” replied government attorney Robert Wetteis.

Simpson on Wednesday heard petitions from 12 migrants, with two saying they were confused over appearance orders with conflicting dates. Applicant William Melendez said he received two orders to appear, each scheduled 10 days apart, and was unclear if both were valid.

A Honduran migrant named Jorge C.N. was taken into Customs and Border Patrol custody overnight because he had been told to arrive at a port of entry for a court appearance the following day, his lawyer said.

He withheld his full name to protect his privacy.

Several other applicants did not have lawyers because they said it was hard to find attorneys to take cases in Mexico, and that even making phone calls to the United States posed a challenge.

Four more people scheduled to appear did not show up at the border port of entry, where they had been told to meet officials to escort them to court.

On Wednesday, the Department of Homeland Security said it would begin next week to send asylum seekers back from El Paso, just north of Mexico’s Ciudad Juarez, the second port of entry to do so after San Ysidro, a district across from Tijuana.

Last week, Mexico said the U.S. would also send migrants back from Calexico, over the border from Mexicali.

The three crossing points fringe Mexico’s northern border zone that has witnessed extensive bloodshed over the past decade as a main battlefield of warring dug cartels.

Texas Democratic Representative Veronica Escobar said she would stand up against the program’s expansion to El Paso.

“With this shameful policy, the administration is endangering lives, abandoning its obligation to bring forward smart solutions for our broken immigration system, and imposing on another country the task of solving our immigration challenges,” she said in a statement.

Immigration attorneys and activists said they feared the move would put further strain on the resources of Ciudad Juarez, where a surge of migrants arrived in February.

Additional reporting by Mica Rosenberg in New York; Additional reporting and writing by Daina Beth Solomon in Mexico City; Editing by Clarence Fernandez

]]>https://cinesilip.su/news/for-asylum-seekers-in-mexico-u-s-judge-asks-how-does-the-court-serve-them/feed/0Missouri River towns face deluge as floods move downstreamhttps://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-river-towns-face-deluge-as-floods-move-downstream/
https://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-river-towns-face-deluge-as-floods-move-downstream/#respondThu, 21 Mar 2019 00:36:06 +0000https://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-river-towns-face-deluge-as-floods-move-downstream/VALLEY, Neb. (Reuters) – A string of small Missouri towns prepared for the next deluge along the raging Missouri River on Wednesday after flooding wreaked nearly $1.5 billion in damage in Nebraska, killing at least four people and leaving another man missing. High water unleashed by last week’s late-winter storm and melting snow has already […]]]>

VALLEY, Neb. (Reuters) – A string of small Missouri towns prepared for the next deluge along the raging Missouri River on Wednesday after flooding wreaked nearly $1.5 billion in damage in Nebraska, killing at least four people and leaving another man missing.

High water unleashed by last week’s late-winter storm and melting snow has already inundated a large swath of Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa along the Missouri River, North America’s longest river. States of emergency have been declared in all or parts of the three Midwestern farm states.

The Missouri River’s next major flood crest was forecast to hit St. Joseph, Missouri, at 6 a.m. on Friday and Kansas City, Missouri, 55 miles (88 km) to the south, about 24 hours later, said Mike Glasch of the Omaha District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Homeowners and businesses across Leavenworth County, Missouri, where 81,000 people were under a flood warning on Wednesday, were placing sandbags around property as they have watched the river rise over the last few days, Kim Buchanan, the county’s deputy director of emergency management, told Reuters.

“We have moderate flooding at this time,” she said, noting that the forecast shows the river cresting seven feet above flood stage on Thursday or Friday. “Anybody with river interest has already instigated their flood plans and have taken their defensive actions.”

FOUR DEAD

The floods killed four people in Nebraska and Iowa since last week, and officials warned the damage toll would rise as receding waters revealed more devastated roadways, bridges and homes.

A fifth man has been missing since the collapse of the Spencer Dam along the Niobrara River last. He was identified by the Omaha World-Herald newspaper as Kenny Angel.

Authorities said they had rescued nearly 300 people in Nebraska alone.

A levee break prompted the evacuation of the small community of Craig, Missouri. Real estate agent Jamie Barnes said everyone in town had time to get out before it was flooded, and water was now flowing south through farmland toward communities such as Forest City, Forbes and St Joseph.

“There’s just water as far as the eye can see, from bluff to bluff. In some places its five miles, in some 15,” Barnes said by phone.

Several other communities in that area of northwest Missouri have also been evacuated, the Army Corps of Engineers said at a briefing.

“Much of the levee system remains compromised, and as of noon Wednesday there are more than 30 total breaches across the system,” in the three states experiencing flooding, Lieutenant Colonel James Startzell, deputy commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District told the briefing.

AIR FORCE BASE FLOODED

“I was driving out to get one more load of corn from the bins when the levee broke, and there was a wall of water coming at me,” said Howard Geib, 54, whose farm is near Craig. “I was on the phone with my son-in-law, who was driving out to help, telling him, ‘Stop! Stop! Turn around!’”

The flooding killed livestock, destroyed grains in storage and cut off access to farms because of road and rail damage.

A vehicle is stuck in mud due to heavy flooding in Winslow, Nebraska, U.S., March 20, 2019. REUTERS/Humeyra Pamuk

Across the Missouri from Craig, the village of Rulo, Nebraska, drew a small crowd of onlookers to see the deluge, said Kelly Klepper, owner of Wild Bill’s Bar & Grill.

“We’re kind of a tourist attraction right now,” Klepper said by phone.

Missouri emergency managers said they may be spared the worst of the flooding because of breaches further north.

But Bean said the kind of flooding hitting the Midwest is typically seen in June and July, after the final snow-melt and the spring rains.

“This is March, and we haven’t had the final snow melt,” he said. “We haven’t had the spring rains. The reservoir is full. They have got to get it empty.”

More than 2,400 Nebraska homes and businesses were destroyed or damaged, with 200 miles (322 km) of roads unusable and 11 bridges wiped out, Governor Pete Ricketts said on Wednesday.

Ricketts estimated the floods caused at least $439 million in damage to public infrastructure and other assets, and $85 million to privately owned assets. He put flood damage for the state’s agricultural sector at nearly $1 billion.

Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, which houses the U.S. Strategic Command, remained heavily flooded, though base officials said on Twitter the facility was still “mission-capable.”

Slideshow (4 Images)

In Valley, Nebraska, outside Omaha, Pete Smock, 42, worked to clear deep mud surrounding his home and construction business.

“Devastation is everywhere. I haven’t seen anything like this in my lifetime,” Smock said. He had rented heavy equipment to fill deep holes cut by the floods with gravel and repair driveways leading to his office and garage.

]]>https://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-river-towns-face-deluge-as-floods-move-downstream/feed/0Missouri towns prepare for deluge as floods move downstreamhttps://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-towns-prepare-for-deluge-as-floods-move-downstream/
https://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-towns-prepare-for-deluge-as-floods-move-downstream/#respondWed, 20 Mar 2019 23:34:29 +0000https://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-towns-prepare-for-deluge-as-floods-move-downstream/VALLEY, Neb. (Reuters) – A string of small Missouri towns on Wednesday prepared for the next deluge along the snow-melt-swollen Missouri River after flooding wreaked nearly $1.5 billion in damage in Nebraska, killing at least four people and leaving another man missing. High water unleashed by last week’s late-winter storm and swiftly melting snow this […]]]>

VALLEY, Neb. (Reuters) – A string of small Missouri towns on Wednesday prepared for the next deluge along the snow-melt-swollen Missouri River after flooding wreaked nearly $1.5 billion in damage in Nebraska, killing at least four people and leaving another man missing.

High water unleashed by last week’s late-winter storm and swiftly melting snow this week has already inundated a large swath of Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa along the Missouri River, North America’s longest river. States of emergency have been declared in all or parts of the three Midwestern farm states.

The Missouri River’s next big flood crest was due to hit St. Joseph, Missouri, about 55 miles (89 km) north of Kansas City, Missouri, and Atchison, Kansas, a short distance downstream, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spokesman James Lowe said on a briefing call.

Homeowners and businesses across Leavenworth County, Missouri, where 81,000 people were under a flood warning on Wednesday, were placing sandbags around property as they have watched the river rise over the last few days, Kim Buchanan, the county’s deputy director of emergency management, told Reuters.

“We have moderate flooding at this time,” she said, noting that the forecast shows the river cresting seven feet above flood stage on Thursday or Friday. “Anybody with river interest has already instigated their flood plans and have taken their defensive actions.”

The floods have killed four people in Nebraska and Iowa since the weekend, and officials warned the toll of physical damage would rise as receding waters revealed more devastated roadways, bridges and homes.

A fifth man has been missing since the collapse of the Spencer Dam last week on the Niobrara River. He was identified by the Omaha World-Herald newspaper as Kenny Angel.

Authorities said they had rescued nearly 300 people in Nebraska alone.

A levee break prompted the evacuation of the small community of Craig, Missouri. Local real estate agent Jamie Barnes said everyone in Craig had time to get out before it was flooded, and water was now flowing south through farmland toward communities such as Forest City, Forbes and St Joseph.

“There’s just water as far as the eye can see, from bluff to bluff. In some places its five miles, in some 15,” Barnes said by phone.

LEVEE SYSTEM COMPROMISED

Several other communities in that area of northwest Missouri have also been evacuated, the Army Corps of Engineers said at a briefing.

“Much of the levee system remains compromised, and as of noon Wednesday there are more than 30 total breaches across the system,” in the three states experiencing flooding, Lieutenant Colonel James Startzell, deputy commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District told the briefing.

“I was driving out to get one more load of corn from the bins when the levee broke, and there was a wall of water coming at me,” said Howard Geib, 54, whose farm is near Craig. “I was on the phone with my son-in-law, who was driving out to help, telling him, ‘Stop! Stop! Turn around!’”

A vehicle is stuck in mud due to heavy flooding in Winslow, Nebraska, U.S., March 20, 2019. REUTERS/Humeyra Pamuk

The flooding killed livestock, destroyed grains in storage and cut off access to farms because of road and rail damage.

Across the Missouri from the evacuated town of Craig, the village of Rulo, Nebraska, drew a small crowd of onlookers to see the deluge, said Kelly Klepper, owner of Wild Bill’s Bar & Grill.

“We’re kind of a tourist attraction right now,” Klepper said by phone. “People that don’t normally come to Rulo have been coming to Rulo to check out the water.”

FLOODED AIR BASE

More than 2,400 Nebraska homes and businesses were destroyed or damaged, with 200 miles (322 km) of roads unusable and 11 bridges wiped out, Governor Pete Ricketts said on Wednesday.

Ricketts estimated the floods caused at least $439 million in damage to public infrastructure and other assets, and $85 million to privately owned assets. He put flood damage for the state’s agricultural sector at nearly $1 billion.

Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, which houses the U.S. Strategic Command, remained heavily flooded, though base officials said on Twitter the facility was still “mission-capable.” The Strategic Command’s mission includes defending against and responding to nuclear attacks.

In Valley, Nebraska, outside Omaha, Pete Smock, 42, worked to clear deep mud surrounding his home and construction business.

Slideshow (4 Images)

“Devastation is everywhere. I haven’t seen anything like this in my lifetime,” Smock said. He had rented heavy equipment to fill deep holes cut by the floods with gravel and repair driveways leading to his office and garage.

The flooding killed livestock, destroyed grains in storage and cut off access to farms because of road and rail damage.

]]>https://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-towns-prepare-for-deluge-as-floods-move-downstream/feed/0Trump’s border wall money may come at expense of schools for military kidshttps://cinesilip.su/news/trumps-border-wall-money-may-come-at-expense-of-schools-for-military-kids/
https://cinesilip.su/news/trumps-border-wall-money-may-come-at-expense-of-schools-for-military-kids/#respondWed, 20 Mar 2019 23:32:50 +0000https://cinesilip.su/news/trumps-border-wall-money-may-come-at-expense-of-schools-for-military-kids/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Department of Defense is proposing to pay for President Donald Trump’s much-debated border wall by shifting funds away from projects that include $1.2 billion for schools, childcare centers and other facilities for military children, according to a list it has provided to lawmakers. The Pentagon gave Congress a list on […]]]>

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Department of Defense is proposing to pay for President Donald Trump’s much-debated border wall by shifting funds away from projects that include $1.2 billion for schools, childcare centers and other facilities for military children, according to a list it has provided to lawmakers.

The Pentagon gave Congress a list on Monday that included $12.8 billion of construction projects for which it said funds could be redirected. Around 10 percent of the list relates to educational establishments and includes school buildings for the children of service members in places like Germany, Japan, Kentucky and Puerto Rico.

The move comes as a surprise given the Trump administration’s oft-touted support for the sacrifices made by military families and suggests the White House’s desire to build a wall on the border with Mexico outstrips nearly all other issues.

However, of the $1.2 billion in projects related to education, approximately $800 million worth are far in the future, and those funds could readily be used for wall construction and replaced later.

The Pentagon told Congress that just because a project was listed, it “does not mean that the project will, in fact, be used” as a funding source to build sections of the border wall.

Trump earlier in March asked for $8.6 billion in his 2020 budget request to help pay for his promised wall on the U.S-Mexico border to combat illegal immigration and drug trafficking. It drew swift criticism from Democrats.

Trump declared a national emergency in a bid to fund the wall without congressional approval, allowing his administration to use money from the military construction budget, if needed.

In a tense Congressional hearing last week, Democratic senators demanded that they be provided a list of military funds that could be utilized to fund wall construction.

Military officials have vowed that they would not use any funds from military housing. A recent Reuters investigation reut.rs/2t1Y2UA found thousands of U.S. military families were subjected to serious health and safety hazards in on-base housing, prompting moves from lawmakers to improve landlord controls.

But elementary and middle schools on bases around the world serving military families are at risk of suffering from the funding diversion, as well as a new engineering building and parking garage at West Point, the Army’s military academy in New York state.

Slideshow (2 Images)

Joint Base Andrews, where the president’s Air Force jet is based, was slated to receive $13 million for a “Child Development Center,” but funding for that project is on the list. The base currently has three child development centers serving the 12,000 to 14,000 active and reserve military stationed there.

The children of pilots for the F-35A jet, being made by Lockheed Martin at a cost of $89 million each, could be impacted. Alaska’s Eielson Air Force Base is slated to get $22.5 million to build a school to enroll 240 additional children “in a remote arctic climate” when the jet begins operations there.

The current school serves 108 and has an “extensive waiting list,” according to Air Force budget documents which say that if a school is not built “children will be turned away,” “directly impacting support of the F-35 mission, morale, and welfare.”

]]>https://cinesilip.su/news/trumps-border-wall-money-may-come-at-expense-of-schools-for-military-kids/feed/0Missouri towns brace for more flooding as Nebraska cleans uphttps://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-towns-brace-for-more-flooding-as-nebraska-cleans-up/
https://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-towns-brace-for-more-flooding-as-nebraska-cleans-up/#respondWed, 20 Mar 2019 22:00:20 +0000https://cinesilip.su/news/missouri-towns-brace-for-more-flooding-as-nebraska-cleans-up/VALLEY, Neb. (Reuters) – Small Missouri towns on Wednesday prepared for the next wave of flooding along the snow-melt-swollen Missouri River after high waters wreaked nearly $1.5 billion in damage in Nebraska, and officials warned the deadly disaster was far from over. Flood waters spawned by last week’s late-winter storm and warmer weather that swiftly […]]]>

VALLEY, Neb. (Reuters) – Small Missouri towns on Wednesday prepared for the next wave of flooding along the snow-melt-swollen Missouri River after high waters wreaked nearly $1.5 billion in damage in Nebraska, and officials warned the deadly disaster was far from over.

Flood waters spawned by last week’s late-winter storm and warmer weather that swiftly melted snow this week inundated a large swath of Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa along the Missouri River, North America’s longest river. States of emergency have been declared in all or parts of the three Midwestern farm states.

The Missouri River’s next big flood crest was due to hit on Thursday at St. Joseph, Missouri, about 55 miles (89 km) north of Kansas City, Missouri, and Atchison, Kansas, a short distance downstream, said U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spokesman James Lowe.

Levees broke in an area of northwest Missouri on Wednesday, prompting the evacuation of the small community of Craig. Local real estate agent Jamie Barnes said everyone in Craig had time to get out before it was flooded, and water was now flowing south through farmland toward communities such as Forest City, Forbes and St Joseph.

“There’s just water as far as the eye can see, from bluff to bluff. In some places its five miles, in some 15,” Barnes said by phone.

Several other communities in that area of northwest Missouri have also been evacuated, the Army Corps of Engineers said at a briefing.

“Much of the levee system remains compromised, and as of noon Wednesday there are more than 30 total breaches across the system,” in the three states experiencing flooding, Lieutenant Colonel James Startzell, deputy commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District told the briefing.

The floods have killed four people in Nebraska and Iowa since the weekend, and officials warned the toll of physical damage would rise as receding waters revealed more devastated roadways, bridges and homes.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds said the snow melt and spring rains could create additional flooding in the weeks ahead because of damaged levees.

“We’re in for the long haul. We’re just getting started,” the Des Moines Register quoted her as saying. Reynolds said she had seen unprecedented flooding in a tour of western Iowa this week that had revealed unprecedented flooding. “It looked like an ocean.”

“STOP! STOP! TURN AROUND!”

In Valley, Nebraska, outside Omaha, Pete Smock, 42, worked to clear deep mud surrounding his home and construction business.

A vehicle is stuck in mud due to heavy flooding in Winslow, Nebraska, U.S., March 20, 2019. REUTERS/Humeyra Pamuk

“Devastation is everywhere. I haven’t seen anything like this in my lifetime,” Smock said. He had rented heavy equipment to fill deep holes cut by the floods with gravel and repair driveways leading to his office and garage.

Authorities said they had rescued nearly 300 people in Nebraska alone.

More than 2,400 Nebraska homes and businesses were destroyed or damaged, with 200 miles (322 km) of roads unusable and 11 bridges wiped out, Governor Pete Ricketts told a news conference on Wednesday.

Ricketts estimated the floods caused at least $439 million in damage to public infrastructure and other assets, and $85 million to privately owned assets. He put flood damage for the state’s agricultural sector at nearly $1 billion.

Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, which houses the U.S. Strategic Command, remained heavily flooded, though base officials said on Twitter the facility was still “mission-capable.” The Strategic Command’s mission includes defending against and responding to nuclear attacks.

“We’re looking for it to recede by late tomorrow,” Drew Nystrom, a spokesman for the base, said on Wednesday. “It’s gonna take a concentrated effort and many months to get everything back to normal.”

In northwestern Missouri, farmer Howard Geib, 54, had a close call.

Slideshow (4 Images)

“I was driving out to get one more load of corn from the bins when the levee broke, and there was a wall of water coming at me,” said Geib, 54, whose farm is near the town of Craig. “I was on the phone with my son-in-law, who was driving out to help, telling him, ‘Stop! Stop! Turn around!’”

The flooding killed livestock, destroyed grains in storage and cut off access to farms because of road and rail damage.

Across the Missouri from the evacuated town of Craig, the village of Rulo, Nebraska, drew a small crowd of onlookers to see the deluge, said Kelly Klepper, owner of Wild Bill’s Bar & Grill.

“We’re kind of a tourist attraction right now,” Klepper said by phone. “People that don’t normally come to Rulo have been coming to Rulo to check out the water.”

Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Additional reporting by Gina Cherelus in New York, Rich McKay in Atlanta, Jarrett Renshaw in Philadelphia, P.J. Huffstutter and Mark Weinraub in Chicago, and Dan Whitcomb in Los Angeles; Editing by Bill Tarrant and Leslie Adler